Program Evaluation for The Loyola Experience: Year TwoCaroline Chalker and Tempris DanielsLoyola University Chicago

Table of ContentsIntroduction.. p. 4-5Program Overview... p. 5-14Theoretical Framework.. p. 5-6History... p. 6-7Description.... p. 7Loyola Experience overall goals. . p. 7-8Year two overall goals and activities. p. 8Touch points and milestones of year two. . p. 8-10Additional programs and activities. .. p. 10Demographics. .. p. 10Purpose and Objectives.. p. 10-12Stakeholders... p. 12-14Logic Model...... p. 14-18Inputs. p. 14-16Outputs..... p. 16Outcomes. p. 16-17Assumptions..... p. 18External Factors........ p. 18Evaluation Approach.. p. 19-20Design Purpose and Success..... p. 20Areas of Investigation . p. 20-21Quantitative Approach.. p. 21-26 Population and Sampling Frame.. p. 21 Response Rate...... p. 21-22 Research Design.. p. 22 Comparison Group.. p. 22 Survey Instrument... p. 22-23 Pilot Test.. p. 23-24 Survey Administration. p. 24-25 Statistical Analysis... p. 25-26 Results in the Final Report... p. 26Qualitative Approach..... p. 26-34Sampling... p. 27Focus Group Protocol.. p. 28-30Pilot Test... p. 30Implementation. p. 30Moderators, audio recording and note taking... p. 30-31Focus group details... p. 31Incentives...... p. 31Analysis...... p. 31-32 Inter-Rater Reliability....... p. 32Member Checking........ p. 32 Biases....... p. 32 Triangulation......... p. 33Limitations........ p. 33Presentation of Qualitative Results..... p. 33-34Mixed Methods.... p. 34Timeline... p. 35Budget. p. 35-36Next Steps p. 36References... p. 37-38Appendices.. p. 39-68Logic Model-Appendix A.... p. 39Survey Construct Map- Appendix B ... p. 40-41 Survey Email Invitation-Appendix C... p. 42 Loyola Experience Second Year Survey- Appendix D.... p. 43- 49Focus Group Email Invites- Appendix E...... p. 50Focus Group Demographic Form- Appendix F.... p. 51-52Consent Form for the Second-Year Experience Focus Group- Appendix G... p. 53-54Third-Year Experience Focus Group Protocol- Appendix H... p. 55-57Fourth-Year Experience Focus Group Protocol- Appendix I... p. 58-60Budget- Appendix J... p. 61Timeline- Appendix K.. p. 62PowerPoint- Appendix L.. p. 63-68

Program Evaluation for The Loyola Experience: Year Two

Loyola University Chicago (LUC), a Jesuit Catholic University, uses their mission statement as the core for creating an inclusive environment. The Loyola mission statement reads We are Chicago's Jesuit, Catholic University-a diverse community seeking God in all things and working to expand knowledge in the service of humanity through learning, justice and faith. (Loyola University Chicago, A1). LUC uses its mission and vision statement Loyola University Chicago is the school of choice for those who wish to seek new knowledge in the service of humanity in a world-renowned urban center as members of a diverse learning community that values freedom of inquiry, the pursuit of truth and care for others (Loyola University Chicago, A1) to create a four-year plan that maps out the goals and touch points that the institution hopes that its students will reach as they progress through their time as an undergraduate student. With this came the creation of the Loyola Experience, this is a living document that informs students, staff, faculty and all whom are involved in the development of students, how LUC envisions students progressing. The Loyola Experience connects back to many Jesuit values and provides guidelines to academic advancement. In order to develop the Loyola Experience, LUCs Division of Student Development and Academic Affairs collaborated to create this four-year-plan document. The Loyola Experience is the larger four-year plan that encompasses the entire undergraduate experience for students at LUC. This is a document and plan for how undergraduate students should move through their time at Loyola, and outlines the experiences that LUC hopes that the students experience and take part in. The Second Year Experience is just one part of The Loyola Experience. This is the smaller outline for second-year students and includes the touch points and goals for that year.LUC created the four-year-plan in order to build a very clear vision for the university to publish that anyone could look at and understand the conceptual framework of an undergraduate students progression through their time at Loyola (S. Howes, personal communication, September 24, 2014). Shannon Howes the director of the Office of Second Year Experience, informed us that Loyola did not create this document because there was any specific problem, rather they felt that there was something missing at the university and they wanted to improve understanding around what an undergraduate students experience may look like in alignment with the universities mission and values. The Loyola Experience is a distinctive process helping students discover their gifts and talents. Within the four-year-plan LUC hopes that, students will continue through their journey of building community (during year one), making commitments such as declaring a major (year two), engaging Chicago and the world (year three), and creating the future (year four) (Loyola University Chicago, B). The purpose of this evaluation is to determine the success of year two, making commitments, where we hope to explore whether the touch-points are aiding the development of students to provide a more holistic experience. We are focusing on year two specifically because we found when reviewing the four-year-plan that many aspects of year two include programming, an interest area we both hold. We also noticed that during year two there are some major milestones such as declaring a major that can affect a students college experience dramaticallyProgram OverviewTheoretical Framework

The Loyola Experience is a program created for the undergraduate student population, it works to help create a positive student transformation and contains seven areas of focus: Build your skills, connect with community, expand your knowledge, commit to faith, justice and service, engage in Chicago and the world, focus on your well-being and lead with values (Loyola University Chicago, B). The four-year-plan does not specify whether this plan is inclusive of transfer students or students native to LUC, but this will be a part of the evaluation we will look to find out. Coinciding with the student promise that promotes care for self, others, and community, the experience incorporates academic, spiritual, and social activities that are unique to each student (Loyola University Chicago, B). Specific to LUC, the Loyola Experience seeks to facilitate reflection, help students mark their milestones, set goals, and shape their own experience. Because this program is unique to LUC and seems to be of interest to other institutions, administers have presented this plan at various national conferences over the last few years (S. Howes, personal communication, September 24, 2014). The Loyola Experience has shifted the expectations for faculty, staff, administrators, and students creating a common goal towards helping students develop holistically in the areas that LUC has outlined. History

The Loyola Experience was established in the early 2000s to assist in creating a holistic environment for students to flourish. LUC wanted to make the outline and plan for undergraduate students clear for them to understand. The implementation committee for the Loyola Experience consists of members from both Academic Affairs and the Division of Student Development, allowing for an equal partnership. Using the transformative education document an article that describes Jesuit theory and values in the context of higher education (Hartnett, 2009), the committee worked to establish a solid foundation of the program using theories and Jesuit traditions. During the early stages of development, committee members found many of the changes they were looking to create coincided appropriately with the institutional values. Surprisingly, the concept of having this experience laid out for the student body is innovative to Loyola and is not widely occurring at other institutions. This factor made the shift in culture challenging, as research on the topic was limited.However from a critical approach, in order for the program to make improvements, both Academic Affairs and The Division of Student Development need to engage students in the process of understand what this document is, why it is in place, and what it means to them as students at LUC. The original planning did not include student input (S. Howes, personal communication, September 24, 2014) a downfall we see as a part of this document and we question why students were not a part of this. Additionally, because this program is a work in progress, there is not a set deadline in terms of when decisions need to be made. Furthermore, because the foundation of the program has already been set in place, small changes will not greatly affect the project. The Loyola Experience was designed to serve students better, and create positive connection points for all students. Although the Loyola community did not find a common problem throughout campus, they did think student experiences could be better fulfilled (S. Howes, personal communication, September 24, 2014). DescriptionLoyola experience overall goals.

As mentioned before, The Loyola Experience was designed to accommodate the traditional four-year student academic path. While each year has a specific goal, there are seven repeating themes including the following: Build your skills, connect with community, expand your knowledge, commit to faith, justice, and service, engage in Chicago and the world, focus on your well-being and lead with values (Loyola University Chicago, B).For the purpose of our project, we will focus in on year two of the Loyola Experience. Before we describe year two, it is important to understand the context of the other years. The first year focuses on building communities. Within this year there is a strong emphasis on developing strong habits and getting involved on campus. The third year centers on engaging in Chicago and the world, where some of the goals include building relationships, and expanding students horizons. The final year centers on creating a positive future for students. Some of the main goals include finding time for reflection and making contacts beyond Loyola University Chicago.Year two overall goals and activities.There are five main goals the institution hopes second-year students achieve. The first goal is to refine strong habits, a necessary action to help students engage in thought-provoking and intellectual work (Loyola University Chicago, B). Secondly, students needs to be able to state their values so that they are able to articulate them and discern how they have formed their personal, academic, and professional goals and decisions (Loyola University Chicago, B). Reflection on what students have learned is the third objective where the institution hopes students will continue to integrate their learning through personal reflections at retreats and/or on their own time of their LUC experience (Loyola University Chicago, B). The fourth objective is to build relationships with faculty, staff, and other members of the LUC community (Loyola University Chicago, B). Building these relationships will provide students with meaningful relationships that they will be able to hold on to after graduation. The last objective for second-year students is to help students find time for faith by providing opportunities for students to deepen the understanding of their own faith and learn about other religions and worlds views (Loyola University Chicago, B).Touch points and milestones of year two.In terms of year two, the overarching theme is titled: Making Commitments. The seven repeating themes reflect the yearly touch-points seen through the year. The first touch-point is to commit to faith, justice, and service and this is executed by celebrating ones own faith with the community around you. The second point is to connect with the community. There are three reflection questions students can use as a guide throughout the year: 1. How can you maximize your intellectual, social, and spiritual growth?2. How are you integrating knowledge from your Core, major, and experiences outside of the classroom?3. How did you grow in your first year? How would you like to grow in your second year (Loyola University Chicago, A6)?Furthermore, the third touch point of the year two plan emphasizes engagement in Chicago and the world. Conversations are had to prepare students for future internships and to create dialogue with the Office of International Programs for future study abroad opportunities. Expanding students knowledge is the fourth point, where direction is given to students about the Core curriculum, experiential learning, teaching, and academic excellence. The final touch-point is to assist students to lead with values. This point includes becoming a better leader and promoting positive change. With these touch points, students are able to engage with each other and gain multiple perspectives of the world. Second-year students are also given the opportunity to complete a checklist of accomplishments. The following are the list of milestones students hope to reach:1. Earn at least 60-plus credit hours.2. Declare majors and minors; generate your academic requirement report in locus.3. Create plans for internships, study abroad, and research with faculty.4. Complete your core curriculum courses.5. Update your resume and e-portfolios6. Participate in the Halfway to Graduation celebration (Loyola University Chicago, B).Additional programs and activities.To help students achieve these goals, some of the key characteristics used to support students include facilitating intentional connections with faculty, staff, students, and community members. Additionally, reflection retreats such as Unwritten provide students with time and space to relax and think (S. Howes, personal communication, September 24, 2014). Welcome Back Week is another experience for students where they receive continued support by the institution. While the needs for second-year students are different than during their first-year orientation, there is continued encouragement for students to continue to make strong connections (S. Howes, personal communication, September 24, 2014). A few additional key activities for second-year students include: sophomore supper, student organizations, and informative time with faculty (S. Howes, personal communication, September 24, 2014). The office that organizes many of these activities is the Office of Second Year Experience. Loyolas hope was to allow progress for all students to learn and engage in a diverse society (S. Howes, personal communication, September 24, 2014), which is shown by creating spaces that are needed. Demographics.The demographics and geographical locations where these activities occur, vary depending on the student, but learning can take place everywhere. The program for sophomore students is a yearlong process until the students move on to year three. This program is not a step-by-step process because there is no follow up, yet the program flows differently based on each students individual needs. Although the description of the program is listed, there is not a particular order, yet just a set of goals and milestones. Purpose and ObjectivesThe purpose of implementing the Loyola Experience was to better serve the students at the institution. The mission of the university states; We are Chicagos Jesuit, Catholic University a diverse community seeking God in all things and working to expand knowledge in the service of humanity through learning, justice, and faith (Loyola University Chicago, A1). Utilizing the mission and building on the overall strategic plan, the board felt that at The Loyola Experience would help enhance students overall satisfaction (S. Howes, personal communication, September 24, 2014). Although students were able to engage with classmates during their first year, administrators learned that students were not connecting with their peers once they declared a major (S. Syversen, personal communication, September 24, 2014). The Loyola Experience provided conditions for students to have common experiences with each other even if in different majors because of the milestones given and assignments like e-portfolios. Additionally, it was important to the institution that students are prepared for life after graduation and that they develop holistically. The LUC community felt as though students were thriving on campus, but wanted to ensure that students could prosper in their future careers and would be culturally competent. The second year was looked at as the forgotten year before the Loyola Experience was established (S. Howes, personal communication, September 24, 2014). One of the main goals for a students second year was to provide higher retention rates by building affinity, where students felt welcomed and wanted by the community (S. Howes, personal communication, September 24, 2014). The second year is an important year for students because if they commit to a major, and return for their third year, the likelihood of graduating is much higher than students who do not return after their first year (S. Howes, personal communication, September 24, 2014). Additionally, an emphasis on the four-year experience is something that is pushed in the second year. LUC wants their students to commit so that they achieve their goals in four years versus five or six years. Urging students to achieve this goal will help them stay on a path for academic support and success (S. Howes, personal communication, September 24, 2014).StakeholdersThere are five stakeholders who play a large part in the past and current success of year two of the Loyola Experience. The first stakeholder is Terri Thomas, the Director of Student Academic Success. As a higher education administrator with over 12 years of professional experience, Terri is dedicated to providing students with high-quality developmental services that attribute to their success (T. Thomas, personal communication, 2014). Terri has been a member of the Loyola community since September 2006 serving as an Academic Advisor. Terris current position has allowed her to co-chair the implementation committee of the Loyola Experience, collaborating with both Division of Student Development and Academic Affairs.Our second stakeholder is Shannon Howes the Director of Leadership Development and Second Year Experience. As the director, she focuses on strategic planning, program development, and assessment (Loyola University Chicago, A4). Shannons office provides students with the opportunities to make commitments concerning their career path and communities (Loyola University Chicago, A4). Additionally, the Office of Second Year Experience encourages students to take ownership of their passions and goals while providing them with different ways to make intentional connections with the community, through activities like the sophomore retreat titled Written, Welcome Back Week, sophomore supper, and halfway to graduation (S. Howes, personal communication, September 24, 2014). Our third stakeholder works with second-year students through academic affairs. The Department of First and Second Year Advising works with students as they explore potential majors. Specifically, Sarah Syversen, Assistant Director of Second-Year Advising, works with additional academic advisors to encourage students to build experience into their four-year plan such as studying abroad and exploring opportunities for research and internships. Additionally the department conducts the sophomore file review where it checks second-year students academic history and ensures they are on the correct path to graduation. Furthermore the office assists students as they explore options for majors and minors and then make a commitment to their academic endeavors. They also assist students in obtaining credits for courses taken while abroad, and participates in the halfway to graduation ceremony (Loyola University Chicago, A2).Our fourth stakeholder is the Assessment Committee chaired by Michael Beazley, Ph.D., Director of Assessment in the Division of Student Development. The assessment committee is membered with both the Division of Student Development and Academic Affairs. According the LUC assessment committee link on the universities website, the assessment committee is responsible for collecting, reporting and working in conjunction with the offices in the Division of Student Development to evaluate learning outcomes and programs (Loyola University Chicago, A5). The final stakeholders are the students who are directly affected by the second-year Loyola Experience. These students will hopefully proceed through this year exercising the habits to engage in challenging intellectual work and integrate their learning through reflection on their experiences (Loyola University Chicago, A5). With these main stakeholders in mind, it is important to realize that there are groups that indirectly benefit from the second-year Loyola Experience. Some of these groups include the other students attending the university, as they are able to see how transformative a students second year can be, as well as the Rogers Park and general Chicagoland community. These individuals/groups are important because they create the community at large and while there is the second-year community, it is important that students not only make commitments to themselves but the people surrounding them. Because one of the goals that the second-year plan includes engaging in Chicago and the world, students may take some time during their second year to work in the Rogers park community or other neighborhoods in Chicago. LUC is connected to many different resources in the city, and students may be told about different community resources if they are interested in areas such as community service, community engagement, local churches, outreach centers etc.Logic ModelThis logic model (Appendix A) created for year two of the Loyola Experience, outlines the flow of the essential parts of this program. It is set up in a way that allows the program to be broken down into its most foundational pieces, and to be processed in a way that goes from start to finish (Wholey, Hatry, & Newcomer, 2010). Because the nature of this program is very large and is set up to serve the entire second-year population of students at Loyola, this logic model is inclusive of all of those pieces. InputsIn order for this to happen, Loyola depends on the students to be participants in this process, where they must partake in the programs and activities outlined by the Loyola Experience for this plan to be successful. The second largest group that this program depends on is the university staff, faculty and administrators. Everything outlined and provided for the second-year students in this plan are run, coordinated, organized and implemented by those at LUC who work directly with students. Without their efforts and willingness to partake in this program, the second-year experience would not be possible. Time is a key component and input for this program, because a large percentage of the activities and programmatic initiatives in the second-year experience are implemented in that academic year, from August to May. Students only have a short amount of time to complete or be a part of all of the experiences laid out for them in their second year. Perhaps the most fluctuating input, money, is a major component of the second-year experience. Loyola must set aside money in order for programs to be run, and students must produce funds if they wish to partake in some of the outlined activities such as study abroad. As the years go by, budgets fluctuate and impact the degree to which these initiatives set forth by the university can run properly. The same goes for the student population, as different classes are enrolled at Loyola, their financial needs and abilities change. Each students finances are unique, therefore adding a very complex layer to this program and how students engage in it. Most departments on campus are either directly or indirectly connected to the experience of second year students at Loyola, but there are a few that are dedicated to serving this population and are informed by the outline of the Second Year Loyola Experience. The first office is Leadership Development and Second Year Experience, an office is grounded by leadership opportunities and programs specifically designed to serve the current second year students. The second office is First and Second Year Advising where their focus lies in guiding this population of students through their second year at Loyola. There are a lot of materials and supplies that go into this second year experience, and much of that is reliant on budget. In order to make these events and initiatives successful they need pamphlets, flyers, t-shirts, dinners, academic supplies etc. Much research was needed in order to design and create this model of the Loyola Second Year Experience. The research that was necessary was needed to allow for the most progressive, current and reliable information that informed the creators of the concept of what a program of its kind would look like, and how it would affect the students. Lastly, technology is a part of everyday life that plays a role in the experience of second year students at Loyola (S. Howes, personal communication, September 24, 2014). Technology was needed to create this program, implement it, utilize it, and understand it. Without the daily use of technology, this program would not be able to function. OutputsThe outputs in this logic model derive from multiple, if not all of the inputs that create the substance of this program. The university along with some key department collaborators, invest a lot of time during the academic year to provide the second-year student population with a multitude of activities and programs, to make sure that all of the goals and touch points, in which they hope that most second year students will reach are obtainable. Some of the major components are retreats hosted by the Leadership Development and Second Year Experience office, the academic advising office assisting with choosing a major, and the Half way to Graduation Celebration. These activities and many more are provided so that the second year students feel supported and encouraged to continue through their academic careers. OutcomesThe outcomes of all of these programs and initiatives are split up between short, medium and long term. After students second year has come to a close, the short-term goals LUC hopes for include a deeper understanding of values and finding a sense of commitment to them, such as joining a club or organization that aligns with ones values. They also hope that you gain the ability to engage in asking Big Life Questions. Although Big Life Questions are different for everyone they mainly surround questions of your academic, social, spiritual and personal development (S. Howes, personal communication, September 24th 2014) especially after you have declared your major. Lastly, among other goals, they hope that you feel a sense of support from the university and are prepared to enter your third year with a good sense of direction. The medium term goals Loyola has set up include building strong bonds with faculty. Through the work of particular departments on campus such as Academic Advising, they hope that students have found a faculty member in the department they are a part of, and feel comfortable working alongside them and approaching them if you need support. After students second year, the university hopes that they have gained a long-term affinity with their graduating class. LUC hopes that students can create a sense of connection to their peers that will carry with them through graduation. Time to discover passions and interest areas at the institution are also of much importance after students second year. The objective is for students to feel at home and find a place on campus where they can thrive and find a sense of community.The long-term goals are skills and values that Loyola hopes students can carry with them not only through the rest of their time as an undergraduate student, but for the rest of their life. An understanding of local, national, and international community is of key importance. A connection to the university is a central piece of what the institution hopes students have come to build after their second year, grow stronger during their third and fourth, and then carry that with them as alumni. Lastly, stronger social and communication skills are a component of personal development the university hopes students can foster in students. The hope is that through the experiences that have been offered, second year students can see a positive change in their communication skills. AssumptionsIn order to evaluate this program in a truthful and honest manor, there are some assumptions about The Second Year Experience that need to be acknowledged. One of the main assumptions is that second year students are allotted enough time during the academic calendar in order to actually complete these touch points laid out for them. The supposition is that these goals are realistic but that may not hold true for all students. There is also the belief that the needs of the students match the outcomes that the university has set forth. This theory may change as higher education and students transform. Additionally, since we know that financial resources are continually changing, there is an assumption that the university will year after year, be able to afford the necessary activities and initiatives in order for this second year experience program to continue and remain long lasting. External FactorsIn order for the second year plan to continue to grow, it must be mindful that for better or for worse there are outside factors that can change the way in which this program works, for better or for worse. The economic climate of not only the state of Illinois, but also of the country can affect the programs success. If funding for the university is cut dramatically or the students entering their second year of Loyola are being impacted by something like a recession, than the opportunities the university had hoped to engage students in might not happen. The influence of family pressure is also an external factor that would need to be taken into consideration with the evaluation of this program. The expectations and needs of students, families and close relationships, may be of competing importance with the Loyola expectations and goals. This can add a more complex level of understanding the different dynamics to this evaluation.

Evaluation ApproachThe goal of this evaluation is to provide an understanding about whether the Loyola Experience: Year Two is working, and if it is not working, what exactly is causing that problem. Specifically, we hope to answer whether second-year students emerge with the types of learning and developmental outcomes outlined by the Loyola Experience second- year plan. Since an evaluation has not been done before surrounding these questions, it will provide a more detailed and specific understanding of how this program is going, and what areas could be improved upon. In order to work on finding those answers this evaluation will take a formative approach. We are looking to be able to provide feedback to the stakeholders, a picture of what can be improved upon, and where the potential problem(s) lie. In taking this formative look at the Second Year Experience, a combination approach of process and outcomes would be most suited to answer some of these questions. Furthermore, we are looking to answer overarching evaluation questions. First our hope is to find out if the Loyola Experience is working and what are some strengths and weaknesses? Next, is the second-year plan serving the needs of second- year students? Third, are students reaching the touch-points that are laid out in the second-year plan? Fourth, is the second-year plan aiding the development of students to provide a more holistic experience? Finally, we are looking to examine whether students are aware of the Loyola Experience? Due to the evaluation questions, a combination approach is best suited for the design of our evaluation. It will allow us to understand if the connections are being made between what the university has planned and stated, and whether the students in their second year are truly being affected in the way the university has hoped (Fitzpatrick, Sanders, & Worthen, 2011), while also looking at whether the delivery of the programs are positively impacting the students. They also focus on the characteristics of the students receiving this program and what the actual activities look like (Fitzpatrick et al., 2011). Because this is such a large program that affects so many students, it will be crucial to understand how the initiatives are being executed. Design Purpose and Success A formative design, with a combination approach, will allow us to understand what is working, and what is not. It will also allow us to understand the experience of second year students, and how they are receiving and being impacted by this program. This combination approach will be a strong way to go about this evaluation because it will allow us to utilize different aspects of evaluation in order to understand as many different parts of this large program as possible. One of the weaknesses we can expect to encounter is a lack of true congruency with the process of understanding how this program affects the students. Because second year students were not included as a part of creating this plan, their voice (arguably the most important) was left out (S. Howes, personal communication, September 24, 2014). Therefore, the evaluation might be able to help administrators and staff more than it can truly identify if this process has helped students, because of its existence. Areas of Investigation The outcome we plan to understand first, is if the goals and areas of growth that LUC has laid out for its second year students can be achieved by the ways in which the institution has planned them to work. This allows us to look at the design of the program and its relationship to actualizing the outcomes. We are also interested in understanding specifically what is allowing it to work, or what is hindering this process from being successful. Second, we would like to look specifically at second year students or those who have just completed their second year, to understand what their experience was like going through this process. Since no formal evaluation has been done on the second year experience, this will provide a good foundation for any more specific evaluations to be completed in the future. These questions are the most basic, yet what we see as the most fundamental to support any forward movement to be done in the future.Quantitative ApproachPopulation and Sampling FrameWe are distributing the survey to 2,497 second-year LUC students through email (Loyola University Chicago, A3). Intentionally, we understand that every student will not fill out the survey but our hopes are that we are able to get a wide-range of perspectives that representative of the entire second-year class. Each student can access a computer and/or Internet through the institutions library or through his or her personal computers. Additionally, due to the last attempt to survey a past second-year class where less than ten students responded (personal communication, M. Beazley, October 1st 2014), our hope is that including raffle prizes will encourage students to participate. For the purpose of this study, staff and faculty will not have the opportunity to fill out the survey. The sample frame we will use for this survey is a census sampling approach (Schuh & Associates, 2009). A census approach is a measurement of the entire sampling population. For the purposes of our study, our sampling population is entire second-year student class. By using this approach, we hope that our results will represent majority of the class (Schuh & Associates, 2009). Response RateThe anticipated response rate is 25% where out of the 2,497 students enrolled in the Fall 2013-2014 first-year class, 624 students would need to complete the survey (Loyola University Chicago, A3). The current research team found that this would be a high-response rate based on previous studies. One hypothesis states that students are more invested in the Loyola Experience because the program has been around longer (personal communication, T. Thomas, October 9th 2014) and students are more connected with the idea of Loyola Experience. Additionally, a department was built to help enrich the second year experience to allow the opportunity for students to become more aware of the different opportunities for them.Research DesignThe research design used for this study is a pre-experimental design. We are evaluating a treatment, the second-year class, during one point in time. Evaluation takes place at the conclusion of the second-year students experience but there is not a control group (Creswell, 2014). The measurement is taken through a single snapshot where regression analyses helps one understand the relationships between explanatory variables like program participation, demographics, and program outcomes evaluators are measuring.Comparison GroupFor this particular evaluation we will not be using a comparison group. In order to evaluate an entire class of students it will take an enormous effort to just handle that volume of numbers and statistics. A comparison group is not a possibility at this point. If we were looking at a subset of the second year students that might be possible, but seeing as though this is the first evaluation to be prepared there is not much to work off of. Survey InstrumentThe survey instrument we have created (Appendix D) is a compilation of foundational questions related to the short term and medium term outcomes we are looking to assess along with demographic questions. There are questions that relate back to short-term and medium-term outcomes. Short-term outcomes were defined as results that could be measured by the end of a students second-year. Medium-term outcomes were defined as answers students could give after reflecting on their second-year experience. For purposes of this evaluation, only short and medium term outcomes were measured based on what outcomes students might have found impactful at this point during their educational journey and overall time.All of the questions asked in the survey relate back to the outcomes that are being analyzed based on the five goals of year two of the four-year plan. Survey questions are based off of the milestones and goals set by the University for second-year students. It is our hope that we gain a better sense for how helpful and supportive University departments were to students during their second-year. In addition, we are looking to see how committed students are to their declared major as well as the bonds they feel they have built with faculty members. While all students may not take a religious stance, through the survey we are examining to see if students think they are provided with opportunities for reflection and/or to gain a better understanding of their faith. The survey will also help us see if students are developing holistically (academically, professionally, personally, and spiritually) during their second-year experience. Finally, our both is to better understand how students think they are building bonds with others students and feel a sense of belonging to the University. Pilot TestWe will be pilot testing our survey. This will allow us to gauge the accuracy of our questions and understand the point of view of a current second-year student who is living out their second year at Loyola. It is our hope that by pilot testing our survey we will be able to gain feedback from current third-year students about any changes that may need to be made on the survey. We hope that they will let us know if there is any major parts of the second-year experience that we have left out or if some questions on the survey are not relative to the second year experience of a student at Loyola. We will also welcome students to annotate any suggestions or notes they have on the sides of the pilot test survey. The testing will occur in a more informal setting so that the students involved do not feel any pressure. We want them to take their time and be honest in their responses. We will ask four current third-year students to be involved in the pilot test. They will both receive the exact same survey. Our choice to include current third year students is intentional because we also want to have feedback from students who have completed their second year and can reflect back on their recent experiences. This will supplement the feedback we receive from current third-year students who may have experienced some parts of the Year Two experience laid out by Loyola, but may also be in the process of experiencing other parts. The most important part of this pilot test will be to ensure that the survey is user-friendly and that the respondents understand the questions. The feedback obtained from the pilot testing will then be evaluated by Caroline Chalker and Tempris Daniels then taken into consideration when making edits. Survey AdministrationThe survey will be administered to students at the completion of their second year at Loyola, during the last month of the semester. In order to collect as much data as possible the survey will be handed out during the last month of the semester. We hope this will allow a large number of students to participate and not confine them to a certain time and date. In order to administer the survey to as many students as possible, students will complete the survey online through a link that they will receive in an email from the university (Appendix E). The survey will be distributed by the Dean of Students office through email (LoyolaExperience@luc.edu). Students will receive reminder emails throughout the last month of the semester asking for participation so that they do not forget about the survey or lose the email. The goal is that through the reminder emails, students will see the importance of completing the surveys and view this survey as a priority. The link will then close on the last day of the semester and we will begin to look at the results. A web-based survey will also allow us to collect a large amount of data quickly and smoothly. Because the students will receive the survey through their email, there will not be anyone present to administer the survey, but we will provide our email addresses for anyone who has any questions or comments about the survey. Although our survey is distributed online, we are accommodating to all students and can distribute the survey in a way that is most comfortable for the student. There will be an incentive involved in this survey. Every second year student who completes the survey will be entered into a raffle to win one of the four $25.00 gift cards to the Loyola bookstore to help pay for their books the following year. There will be a total of four single gift cards given away. Statistical AnalysisAfter the survey closes during the final month of the semester, we will begin by using SPSS to run frequencies for categorical variables based off of our survey using demographics such as race, gender, age, first-generation college student status, and student living arrangement in order to get a general understanding of who completed our survey. In addition, a means likert-scale is used to gain a better perspective of the range of students completing the survey. Using this breakdown will allow us to see if there is a particular demographic of student that has not filled out the survey and therefore may skew our data in one way or another based off the demographic breakdown of the entire second-year class. A frequency analysis will also help us to see how students feel about their connection with university faculty and staff across the entire demographic categories. We will then use regression tests to explain multiple variables and their connection to each other or lack thereof using independent variables such as demographics relate to dependent (outcome) variables like connectedness and a sense of belonging to the university. Looking at frequencies will allow us to look at how representative the sample population is to the entire population of second year students. Results in a Final Report After running the statistical analysis through SPSS we will present the results in two forms, tables and charts. The tables will allow us to show the results of the descriptive statistical analysis that we run. The use of tables will allow us to show numbers such as the different means, medians and modes in a visual. We will also present data in a table format and include values such as Beta coefficients, R-square values, and standard errors for the independent variables tested in order to describe the regression analysis and frequencies. Qualitative ApproachWhile our quantitative assessment will assist in describing statistics related to the survey results, our qualitative assessment will go beyond that by providing enriching stories from our survey respondents. With the use of questions related to the given topics, our focus groups will look to highlight memorable moments of the second-year experience. Our qualitative approach will allow us to see how students are interacting on campus and their level of involvement. In addition, this approach will be shaped based on the quantitative survey questions and will help evaluators learn through students stories how the second-year experience aids students in their development. Using a focus group approach, our data collected will help investigate our processes and outcomes. A focus group is used during the qualitative approach to collect data through a semi-structured conversation with students and the group leader (Schuh, 2009). A major way data collection will link to our processes and outcomes is by addressing the correlation we find through survey results and focus groups. From this we are able to hear the process in which students take to reach the learning outcomes. The outcome approach will help make improvements for the second-year experience. Through the shared experiences, assessment can be done on how to improve and make the second-year more impactful. The process approach will help researchers investigate how the second-year experience shaped the students. SamplingFor the qualitative approach, we would like to create opportunities for focus groups where students will have the opportunity to share their experiences. This will help us get a sense of what a students second-year experience may generally look like. We will use a purposeful sampling method for our focus groups, which will be chosen based on the survey responses we receive in order to maintain maximum variation across multiple demographics (Schuh, 2009). By utilizing purposeful sampling, we are able to filter student participation based on different demographics such as race/ethnicity, age, gender, parental/guardians educational status, and student living arrangements. We hope to utilize these demographics to ensure we have a range of students represented during our focus groups. In addition, we find that it will be beneficial to have a range of students who are and who are not committed to their declared major as well as a range of a students level of involvement on-campus. In relation to our sampling population we are looking to have a range of students who both completed and did not complete the milestones set for second-year students. Focus Group ProtocolOur focus group protocol is divided into seven different sections: welcome, reflection of the most important parts of your second-year, declaring a major, development of leadership skills and engagement on campus, exploration of service learning opportunities, exploration of faith and social justice opportunities, and critiques and suggestions. The above group topics were chosen based on the milestones set for second-year students to achieve. Each topic is connected to a milestone in the hopes that students have an overall second-year experience that is meaningful. In addition, these topics will build upon our quantitative survey and allow us to answer our original evaluation question by hearing students stories on how these topics are determining the success of year two, making commitments, where we hope to explore whether the touch-points are aiding the development of students to provide a more holistic experience. The welcome and icebreaker are part of our focus group so that students have a chance to meet each other and converse before the actual focus group in order to build affinity and talk about non-focus group related items. The icebreaker will consist of students sharing their name, declared major, and one thing about themselves. After every student has done this, they will have about 30-minutes to eat dinner before the focus group starts. The focus group will officially start with an introduction, overview of the night, and consent form procedure (Appendix H & I).For the topic titled reflection of the most important parts of your second-year, we hope to gain stories surrounding students most significant pieces of their second-year and why their experiences are so meaningful. The time it will take to speak about this topic is 15-minutes. The focus of this section is to get students to start talking about their second-year experience in a broader sense. Through these conversations we are able to relate a students experience to the overall milestones of a second-year experience and see which experiences students discuss when thinking of their most memorable ones and to what extent the Loyola Experience programming connects with these experiences. During this focus group segment, we would like students to reflect on their overall experience and identify what points stand out (Appendix H & I).The next topic discussed is declaring a major. This section will take 15-minutes, transitioning to student academic stories. This section of the focus group is significant for us, where the most noted milestone for students is declaring a major. The process of declaring a major must be completed by the end of a students second-year. The focus of this section is to gain a better understanding of the journey students take to explore their major. We are looking to examine whether in-class experiences, out-of-class experiences, faculty, and peers play a role in a students exploration. This is also a time where students can reflect on whether various coursework activities played a part in the process of exploring and declaring their major.Concluding with declaring a major, developing of leadership skills and engagement on campus is the next 15-minute topic. The focus of this topic is to engage in conversation concerning co-curricular involvement. The questions and probes we ask (Appendix H & I) focus on student involvement, leadership, and leadership skills gained through involvement. Our hopes are that students will reflect on both formal and informal involvement and how that may have impacted their second-year experience as a whole. As part of the Loyola Experience, second-year students are encouraged to make commitments to their organizations and become a better leader.The next 15-minute section of the focus group is exploration of service learning opportunities. During this timeframe, students will engage with each other about any opportunities they had to participate in service learning. In addition, we will invite students to consider whether their experiences have changed their perceptions (Appendix H & I). These questions will be asked because as a second-year student, one of the milestones for the Loyola Experience is to explore the world through different service opportunities. Following the discussion around service learning opportunities, we will shift gears to explore our final topic, faith and social justice opportunities. With Loyola being a Jesuit institution, this 15-minute section will explore whether students wanted to participate in faith/religious experiences as well as social justice related opportunities (Appendix H & I). Milestones set surrounding these topics for second-year student may be conflicting because although students are attending a religiously-affiliated institution, they may not hold the same values. Through our conversations, we hope to gain knowledge on what students consider a commitment to faith, if at all, and what expanding ones faith may look like.Pilot TestA pilot test on the focus group protocol will be done during the same time our survey is distributed to the second-year students. While students who pilot test in our focus group will have the opportunity to complete our survey questions, these students will not be able to participate in the actual focus group, to ensure validity. We will ask our pilot test students to go through the focus group process and give honest feedback about the questions asked, environment setting, and any other critiques to ensure the focus groups are ran smoothly in the future. ImplementationModerators, audio recording and note taking.The next steps will be to carry out the focus groups that we have planned for the qualitative portion of the evaluation. Both evaluators will serve as the moderators for the focus groups; we will switch on and off. One evaluator will be moderating for two of the focus groups and the other evaluator will be the moderator for the third. While one person is the moderator the other will serve as a note taker and make sure that the conversation is recorded. In order to make sure that we can look back at the focus group information we will be audiotaping the focus group sessions as well as taking notes. The person who is not the moderator during a particular focus group will start the audiotape and then take notes as the conversation goes on.Focus group details. These focus groups will occur at the end of the second-year experience, but because we are asking students to fill out their surveys at the end of the semester, they will then all be leaving for summer break, so we will not be able to host these focus groups until the students return back for the beginning of the next academic year. Upon arriving back in the fall the second-year students will attend the third-year focus group (Appendix H) and the third-years will attend the fourth-year focus group (Appendix I). The focus groups will be held in conference rooms in the Damen Student Center on Loyolas Lake Shore Campus. We will reserve rooms that have enough space for large tables and plenty of chairs to accommodate all the students involved. Each focus group will last for approximately ninety minutes; we hope not to have students for much longer than that. Incentives.Since it will be the beginning of a new semester when we host these focus groups we will be hosting them during a weekday evening hour. Our hope is that by providing dinner and hosting it in the Damen Student Center this will make for a more comfortable environment for the students and they will not feel as though this is another stressful event to add to their already busy lives. The dinner is catered and it will also include soft drinks; we will not be providing any other incentives beyond the free dinner. AnalysisIn order to analyze all of the data that the evaluators will collect through the focus groups, we will utilize a descriptive coding method. We will go about this coding by a mixture of the two options between developing codes before we read through the transcriptions, and also change/edit the codes as we continue to work through the transcriptions (Rogers & Goodrick, 2010). Because we plan to host multiple focus groups each lasting approximately ninety minutes long we recognize that this will produce a very large amount of transcription data. Once all of the transcribing has been completed we will scan through the transcriptions and utilize the pawing method in order to sift through and find any repeating themes or concepts. Inter-Rater ReliabilityEvaluators will test for inter-rater reliability in order to make sure that the coding system we will be utilizing while sifting through the transcriptions are similar. We also want to do this to make sure that we are on the same page when it comes to definitions of codes, so that we understand what each code means to each other and have matching understanding/definitions of each code. Consistency is going to be very important in our study because of the massive amount of students involved and data that will be collected.Member CheckingWe will also utilize member checking in order to make sure that the evaluators are truly getting to the core themes that may be highlighted in all of the data. It will be important for us to go back to some of our respondents and focus group members to make sure that the results we are finding actually resonate with our respondents.Biases Neither evaluator attended LUC for our undergraduate studies so we do not have any particular bias that may shape how we analyze the data. If we find that when we receive the surveys back and we are looking over the results that we feel we have a prominent bias that we had not formally recognized then we will include this into the evaluation narrative.TriangulationIn order for the results and data to be as accurately interpreted as possible we will be using triangulation, which include the use of data collection methods and multiple investigators to collect data (Schuh, 2009). This method will allow us to cross check all the information we have collected from various sources in order to be as sure as possible when making generalizations about the experiences of students at LUC. This triangulation will include crosschecking the surveys, the focus group data and all of our notes and recordings that we collected along the way.LimitationsOne of the limitations that we may encounter along the way is that we may not interpret the data as accurately as possible. It is going to take a lot of rigorous checking and rechecking on our parts to make sure that all of the coding and reading over of data is done with as much common understanding between us as possible. Misinterpretation of data would be the most significant threat to validity in our evaluation over-all. In order to combat this as much as possible, evaluators will be working very close together in order to make sure that the analysis of our data is done with as much communication with each other as possible and a strong understanding of our common definitions. Because we are using descriptive coding this will help to add more codes or make any edits necessary as the process moves along. It is our hope that this will help with getting caught in the cycle of codes that do not accurately depict students experiences. Presentation of Qualitative ResultsIn order to display the results that we gather in the most clear and effective manor, the evaluators will incorporate graphs, tables and quotations to display the findings. These results will show what second-year students are actually experiencing at LUC, and whether the ways in which the goals of the Loyola Experience Plan are being lived out. The tables and graphs will also be a clear representation for demographic breakdowns. These results will display how certain groups of students experience their second year at Loyola, and how their identities may impact their experience. Our hope is that much of the power of the data that we collect from the qualitative work will be a collection of quotes and voices of students. In the qualitative results, the quotations will allow the readers to understand the students experiences and some of their most salient moments. These results will help to illustrate the lived experience of second-year students at Loyola. Lastly, it will provide a way to see if their time during their second year matches with the goals and expectations set by the university. Mixed MethodsThis evaluation calls for a mixed methods design, it allows for the most precise and concrete understanding of the experiences of second year students at LUC. As Taylor and Trumbull (as cited in Schuh, 2009) assert The skilled researcher can draw the best from both approaches and combine them. Researchers should not assume that one approach is superior to the other, or that qualitative data are easier to use. First, the quantitative approach will allow for survey results to be collected and quantified. These results will garner descriptive data and inform researchers and stakeholders of averages and how different groups of students experienced their second year. Next, our quantitative approach will inform us of how to create our focus groups, a purposeful sampling approach. The focus groups will help to gain a more in depth understanding of their experiences and help to understand the quantitative data. The qualitative focus groups will allow second-year students to tell their stories in a more in depth manor. TimelineBecause the large size of this evaluation, the timeline from start to finish is quite lengthy (Appendix K). This process will begin in the spring of 2015 with the first email sent out to students asking them to participate in the survey. There will then be two more email reminders sent out after that in late April and then in May. During the summer of 2015 all of the data that was collected through the surveys will be analyzed and preparations will be made for the focus groups. Then, once the students return back in the fall for the next year of classes the focus groups will be conducted, this will take approximately three weeks. Once all of our focus group data has been collected it will be sent out to be transcribed during October and November. The hope is that with such a large number of students that may participate and be involved in the focus groups, that the transcribing process will take a long time. Then, once we receive the transcription data back from our outside hired transcribers we will combine and integrate the data we have from the surveys (quantitative) and the data from the focus groups (qualitative). This integration process will be the final culmination of the mixed methods approach. Lastly, from November 2015 through January of 2016, the stakeholders and evaluators will be involved in the decision making process and working together to think of how to best move forward with this assessment. BudgetThe budget for this assessment is on the larger end of the scale because of the number of students that we hope will participate and therefore generate a large quantity of data (Appendix J). The personnel, space and campus labs are all free because they can be utilized on LUCs campus. The gift cards are the incentive piece we will be giving away to the first students who participate in the survey. The food amount is allocated for the focus group dinners. We have also set aside $50.00 for materials in order for our focus groups to function. The largest sum of money we will need is $10,000 for two people to transcribe all of our data from the focus groups. Lastly, we have set aside an additional $500.00 for any costs that may come up as we work through this assessment. Next StepsMoving forward the next steps would be to implement this evaluation at LUC. In order to do this, this document would need to be presented to the stakeholders at LUC such as Shannon Howes, Terri Thomas, Michael Beazley and Senior Level Administrators. A conversation surrounding feasibility would be of upmost importance. Conversations would need to be had asking if this evaluation plan is possible at LUC or if it would need to be scaled back. During this conversation, stakeholders would also need to think back to when they last tried to evaluate the second-year experience and the shortcomings of that plan. If stakeholders decided that this evaluation plan should be implemented those involved would need to come up with ways to promote this evaluation to students. As we know from conversation with Michael Beazley they have had extremely low participation numbers in evaluations past. This process would involve looking at past promotions that have been done and think about ways to change that marketing tactic. Much thought and conversation would need to happen as well as scheduled meetings with stakeholders in order to assure that everyone on board is on the same page and has a clear understanding of the forward direction of this assessment.

ReferencesCreswell, J.W. (2104). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed method approaches (4th Edition). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. Hartnett, Father D.F,S.J. (2009). Transformative Education in the Jesuit Tradition. http://www.luc.edu/media/lucedu/mission/pdfs/Transformative%20Education%20document.pdf.Fitzpatrick, J., Sanders, J., & Worthen, B. (2011). Program evaluation: Alternative approaches and practical guidelines(4th Ed.) New York: Longman. Loyola University Chicago, A1. (n.d.). College mission statement. Retrieved from http://www.luc.edu/mission/index.shtmlLoyola University Chicago, A2. (n.d.). First and second year advising. Retrieved from http://www.luc.edu/fsya/index.shtmlLoyola University Chicago, A3. (n.d.) Office of Institutional Research. Retrieved from http://www.luc.edu/ir/index.shtmlLoyola University Chicago, A4. (n.d.). Second-year experience. Retrieved from http://www.luc.edu/secondyear/Loyola University Chicago, A5. (n.d.). Assessment committee. Retrieved from http://www.luc.edu/studentdevelopment/about/assessment/committee/Loyola Univeristy Chicago, A6. (n.d.) The Loyola Experience. Retrieved from http://luc.edu/loyolaexperience/year2/Loyola University Chicago, B. (n.d.) The Loyola experience [Brochure]. Chicago, IL.Schuh, J.H. & Associates (2009). Assessment methods for student affairs. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.Wholey, J.S., Hatry, H.P., & Newcomer, K.E. (Eds.) (2010). Handbook of practical program evaluation (Third Edition). Jossey- Bass: San Francisco. Whitt, E. J., & Edison, M. I. (2001). Influences on students' openness to diversity and challenge in the second and third years of college. Journal Of Higher Education, 72(2), 172-204.

Running head: THE LOYOLA EXPERIENCE1

THE LOYOLA EXPERIENCE 38

Appendix ALogic Model

Appendix B Survey Construct Map

THE LOYOLA EXPERIENCE 68

Appendix CSurvey Email InvitationFirst Email Subject: Request for Participation in the Year Two Loyola Experience Focus Group

Greetings Second-Year Students,

We hope this email finds you all well as the end of the school year comes to a close. Our names are Caroline Chalker and Tempris Daniels. We are graduate students in the higher education program at Loyola. We are conducting an evaluation of the second-year experience as a piece of the Loyola Experience. Our hope is that your feedback will help us connect whether the milestones, goals, and experiences developed as part of the Loyola Experience for second years are being met.

We would like to invite each of you to take part in our 10-minute survey where we ask you about your second-year experience. The first 50 students who complete the survey will be entered into a raffle for a chance to win one of our four $25.00 gift cards.

Thank you for your time and support. Your participation in this survey is essential in order to ensure the Loyola Experience is meaningful for all students. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Caroline (cchalker@luc.edu) or Tempris (tdaniels3@luc.edu).

Have a great rest of a year!Caroline Chalker & Tempris Daniels

Reminder EmailSubject: Reminder Email to Participate in the Year Two Loyola Experience Survey

Greetings Second-Year Students,

This is a friendly reminder that you have until (enter date) to complete the second-year survey. Please keep in mind that your participation in the survey is vital to ensure that we are achieving the goals set for second year students.

Thank you again for time and support. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Caroline (cchalker@luc.edu) or Tempris (tdaniels3@luc.edu).

Cheers,Caroline Chalker & Tempris Daniels

Appendix D Loyola Experience Second Year Survey

Thank you so much for participating in our Second Year Engagement (Loyola Experience) survey. The purpose of this survey is to examine the second-year experience at Loyola University Chicago. Information from this survey will be used to evaluate year two of the Loyola Experience.

Your response to this survey will be confidential. Names and email addresses will not be attached to answers. If you are to ever feel uncomfortable at any point of the survey, please know that you are able to skip or stop the survey at any time. If you have any questions, feel free to contact Caroline Chalker (cchalker@luc.edu) or Tempris Daniels (tdaniels3@luc.edu).

In this survey, please rate each question from 1-5, 1 meaning strongly disagree and 5 meaning strongly agree.

Thank you for taking the time to fill-out our second-year engagement (Loyola Experience) survey. In an effort to understand second-year students needs, we have created a short survey. The survey should not take more than 10 minutes to complete. We thank you for taking the time to complete the sruvey and we appreciate your honest feedback.

Please fill out a few questions surroundings ones understanding of faith and religious stance based on your second-year engagement.

Please take the time to fill out questions surrounding your decision-making processes and bonds built during your second-year engagement.

Appendix EFOCUS GROUP EMAIL INVITES

Initial Invitation Email: Focus GroupSubject: Request for Participation in Loyola Experience Focus Group

Greetings Loyola Students,

We hope this email finds you well. We would like to thank you for participating in our Loyola Experience Second-Year Survey. As we dig deeper into our results we are looking to hear our students stories as these relate to their second-year experience. Our hope is that your feedback will help us understand second-year students experiences after participating in various Loyola Experience programming.

We would like to invite each of you to take part in our 90-minute focus group on (give three DATES & TIMES) where we ask you about your second year experience. With dinner provided, we are asking for two hours of your time, with the first 30 minutes dedicated to dinner.

If you would like to participate, we ask that you reply to this email indicating which time best works for you. Once we receive confirmations from all by (DATE), you will receive a follow-up email with location, time, and date of your focus group, which will be held on Lake Shore Campus.

Thank you for your time and support. Your participation in this focus group is appreciated in order to ensure the Loyola Experience is meaningful for all students. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Caroline (cchalker@luc.edu) or Tempris (tdaniels3@luc.edu).

Cheers!Caroline Chalker & Tempris Daniels

Follow-Up Email: Focus GroupSubject: Follow-Up Focus Group Reminder

Greetings Loyola Students,

We hope that this email finds you well. We are very excited that you have decided to participate in our focus group where we will converse about your experiences as second-year students. We want to remind you that your focus group will take place on the Lake Shore Campus on (fill in date) at (fill in time).

Thank you again for your time and input. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Caroline (cchalker@luc.edu) or Tempris (tdaniels3@luc.edu).

Cheers,Caroline Chalker & Tempris DanielsAppendix FFOCUS GROUP DEMOGRAPHIC FORM

Date _______________

Please complete the form below. You may choose to answer any of the items, as you feel comfortable. If you have any questions, please ask your focus group leaders.

Appendix GConsent Form for the Second-Year Experience Focus Group

You have been asked to participate in a focus group for Loyola University Chicagos Second- Year Loyola Experience program. We would like to thank you for volunteering to take part in this focus group. The purpose of this focus group is to gather information about your experience at LUC during your second year. Please take some time to read through this form. This form contains pertinent information about your consent to participate in this focus group. If you have any questions about the content of this consent form please ask one of the focus group leaders. Once you have signed this form and agreed to participate, you will be involved in our group conversation where we will answer questions surrounding your experience as a second-year student. If at any time you feel uncomfortable answering any of the questions, you are not required to do so. Please know that throughout this focus group there is no one right answer. We are simply looking to hear your stories and understand your experience. Your participation in this focus group is entirely voluntary. If at any time you would like to withdraw you are allowed to do so without penalty.

In order to secure confidentiality as much as possible your name will not be used in any of our reporting. Any information that you share with this group today will not be discussed outside of our evaluation team. Furthermore, we ask that participants in this focus group do not share anything they hear from the group members outside of this space.

This focus group session will be audio recorded in order to be as accurate as possible throughout the evaluation process. This evaluation team will only use the recordings for purposes of this evaluative process.

There is low risk involved in participating in this focus group. Although participants will agree to keep what is shared within this group, they could break confidentiality and discuss with others outside of the group. The benefits to participation include a deeper understanding and reflective time with other students surrounding your experience as a second year student at Loyola University Chicago.

If you find you have any questions about this focus group, feel free to contact Caroline Chalker at cchalker@luc.edu or Tempris Daniels at tdaniels3@luc.edu. If you would like a copy of this form please ask one of the facilitators and they will gladly make you a copy.

If you agree to the above terms, please sign and date below.

__________________________ ____________________________________Participants SignatureParticipant NameDate

______________________________________________________________Evaluator SignatureEvaluator NameDate

Appendix HTHIRD- YEAR EXPERIENCE FOCUS GROUP PROTOCOL

Focus Group Purpose: To grasp additional knowledge and insights of the second-year student experience through student stories. The focus group will take place for second-year students during the first week of their junior academic year.

Focus Group Topics:Reflection of the Most Important Parts of your Second-Year Declaring a Major Developing of Leadership Skills and Engagement on Campus Exploration of Service Learning OpportunitiesExploration of Faith/Social Justice Opportunities Critiques/ SuggestionsScriptWelcome [5 minutes]

Welcome everyone and thank you for joining us for our third-year focus group. My name is [moderator name] and this is [name of assistant moderator}, my assistant. Tonight I will be guiding us through the conversation and my assistant will be taking notes and recording our conversation. The purpose of this dialogue is to gain an understanding of your experiences as a second-year student in the final weeks of the academic year that involves participates to look back at their entire second-year and not just the end of it. Our focus is to understand your thoughts, personal experiences, and significant occurrences during your second year. This focus group will take place for 90 minutes. During this time, our hope is that everyone will contribute to the conversation.

It is important to us that you all know that anything shared in this focus group should remain confidential among focus group members. In order to allow each member to fully engage in the dialogue, we hope that everyone will be mindful of the contributions of those in the room. We will not be using any names or identifiers when looking back at or reporting on the focus group conversation. At this time, we would ask everyone to read and sign the consent form. Are there any questions at this time? [Wait and Collect Consent Forms]

Todays conversation will cover the following themes related to your time as a second year student. First, we would like to gain a better understanding of the important parts of your second-year. Next, we will discuss the experience of declaring a major. Third, we will talk about the opportunities to develop leadership skills and engagement on campus. Fourth, we want to learn about the chance to explore service-learning opportunities. Our last topic is centered-around exploring ones faith/social justice opportunities. At the end, we will discuss different critiques and suggestions to improve the second-year experience at Loyola University Chicago.

At this time we would like for everyone to introduce himself or herself, tell us your declared majors, and one interesting fact about yourself. After we complete introductions we will have dinner and continue with our discussion.

Reflection of the Most Important Parts of your Second-Year [10 minutes]1. Can you please share with us some of your most significant parts of your second-year here at Loyola? Probe: For what reasons were these experiences significant to you?Probe: Were there any key people other than you involved in these experiences?2. How would your second-year look if you had not had those significant experiences?3. Did you expect to have these experiences in your second year? Why or why not?

Declaring a Major [15 minutes]1. What was the process like to declare your major?Probe: Tell us about the process you took to explore the major you chose at the end of your second-year?Probe: Tell us about the process you took to commit to the major you chose at the end of your second-year?2. How has your various coursework influenced your major exploration process?Probe: Did faculty take a role in influencing your process in the classroom? If so, can you provide an example?Probe: Did peers take a role in influencing your process in the classroom? If so, can you provide an example?3. What, if any, out-of-class experiences informed your major exploration processes?Probe: What insights in particular did these experiences provide that related to your major exploration?

Developing of Leadership Skills and Engagement on Campus [15 minutes]1. In what ways, if at all, have you been involved on campus? Probe: Im wondering if you can share more about your choices to get involved in these opportunities. 2. In what ways, if at all, have you taken on leadership roles (formally or informally) in your involvement efforts?Probe: Im wondering if you can share more about your choices to get involved in these opportunities.3. Are you aware of any leadership skills you have developed?Probe: Which skills in particular have you developed?

Exploration of Service Learning Opportunities [15 minutes]1. For what reasons did you or did you not participate in service learning experiences? 2. How have you changed, if at all, through your participation in any service learning opportunities? Probe: What aspects of the service learning experiences attribute to your changes?

Exploration of Faith and Social Justice Opportunities [15 minutes]1. For what reasons did you or did you not participate in faith/religious experiences?2. Did you participate in any social justice related activities during your time as a second year student?Probe: How have you changed, if at all, through your participation in any social justice related activities?Probe: What aspects of your faith and social justice opportunities attribute to your changes?

Critiques/ Suggestions/ Conclusion [10 minute]1. As a student, did you feel you missed out on any opportunities during your second-year?2. Is there any other type of second-year programming you wish you would have know about or participated in? 3. Does anyone have any final reflections/insights that they did not yet share related to the second-year experience?

Thank you all so much for being engaging and sharing your experiences, perspectives, and thoughts with us. We appreciate the time everyone took out of your day. This focus group will help us better understand the experiences second-year students are having and the ways we can make student experiences fuller.

Appendix IFOURTH-YEAR EXPERIENCE FOCUS GROUP PROTOCOL

Focus Group Purpose: To reflect on the lived experiences of second year students as they embark on their third academic year

Focus Group Topics:Reflection of the Most Important Parts of your Second-Year Declaring a Major Developing of Leadership Skills and Engagement on Campus Exploration of Service Learning OpportunitiesExploration of Faith/Social Justice Opportunities Critiques/ SuggestionsFocus-Group ScriptWelcome [5 minutes]

Welcome everyone and thank you for joining us for our fourth-year focus group. My name is [moderator name] and this is [name of assistant moderator}, my assistant. Tonight I will be guiding us through the conversation and my assistant will be taking notes and recording our conversation. The purpose of this dialogue is to gain an understanding of your experiences as a second-year student as you embark on your fourth academic year where you all will have the chance to look back at your entire second-year. Our focus is to understand your thoughts, personal experiences, and significant occurrences during your second year. This focus group will take place for one hour and half. During this time, our hope is that everyone will contribute to the conversation.

It is important to us that you all know that anything shared in this focus group should remain confidential among focus group members. In order to allow each member to fully engage in the dialogue, we hope that everyone will be mindful of the contributions of those in the room. We will not be using any names or identifiers when looking back at the focus group conversation. At this time, we would ask everyone to read and sign the consent form. Are there any questions at this time? [Wait and Collect Consent Forms]

Todays conversation will cover the following themes related to your time as a second year student. First, we would like to gain a better understanding of the important parts of your second-year. Next, we will discuss the experience of declaring a major. Third, we will talk about the opportunities you had to develop leadership skills and engagement on campus. Fourth, we want to learn about the chances you had to explore service-learning opportunities. Our last topic is centered-around exploring faith and social justice opportunities. At the end, we will discuss different critiques and suggestions to improve the second-year experience at Loyola University Chicago.At this time we would like for everyone to introduce himself or herself, tell us your declared majors, and one interesting fact about yourself. After we complete introductions we will have dinner and continue with our discussion.

Reflection of the Most Important Parts of your Second-Year [10 minutes]1. Can you please share with us some of your most significant parts of your second-year here at Loyola? Probe: For what reasons were these experiences significant to you?

Probe: Were there any key people other than you involved in these experiences?2. How would your second-year look if you had not had those significant experiences?3. Did you expect to have these experiences in your second year? Why or why not?

Declaring a Major [10 minutes]1. What was the process like to declare your major?Probe: Tell us about the process you took to explore the major you chose at the end of your second-year?Probe: Tell us about the process you took to commit to the major you chose at the end of your second-year?2. How has your various coursework influenced your major exploration process?Probe: Did faculty take a role in influencing your process in the classroom? If so, can you provide an example?Probe: Did peers take a role in influencing your process in the classroom? If so, can you provide an example?3. What, if any, out-of-class experiences informed your major exploration processes?Probe: What insights in particular did these experiences provide that related to your major exploration?

Developing of Leadership Skills and Engagement on Campus [15 minutes]1. In what ways, if at all, have you been involved on campus? Probe: Im wondering if you can share more about your choices to get involved in these opportunities. 2. In what ways, if at all, have you taken on leadership roles (formally or informally) in your involvement efforts?Probe: Im wondering if you can share more about your choices to get involved in these opportunities.3. Are you aware of any leadership skills you have developed?Probe: Which skills in particular have you developed?

Exploration of Service Learning Opportunities [15 minutes]1. For what reasons did you or did you not participate in service learning experiences? 2. How have you changed, if at all, through your participation in any service learning opportunities? Probe: What aspects of the service learning experiences attribute to your changes?

Exploration of Faith/Social Justice Opportunities [15 minutes]1. For what reasons did you or did you not participate in faith/religious experiences?2. Did you participate in any social justice related activities during your time as a second year student?Probe: How have you changed, if at all, through your participation in any social justice related activities?Probe: What aspects of your faith and social justice opportunities attribute to your changes?

Critiques/ Suggestions/ Conclusion [10 minutes1. As a student, did you feel you missed out on any opportunities during your second-year?2. Is there any other type of second-year programming you wish you would have know about or participated in? 3. Does anyone have any final reflections/insights that they did not yet share related to the second-year experience?

Thank you all so much for being engaging and sharing your experiences, perspectives, and thoughts with us. We appreciate the time everyone took out of your day. This focus group will help us better understand the experiences second-year students are having and the ways we can make student experiences fuller.

Appendix JBudget

Appendix KTimeline

Appendix LPowerPoint Presentation